Property Advert of the Week: Home Sites Development Commission Advertisement (1968)

This week, we head to Fairfield West, where 33 lots of land just off King Road were on sale through the Home Sites Development Commission, which was part of the Housing Commission of NSW. I have included a Google Earth link to show how the area looks today. In today's money, the block of land just cost around $27 500 according to the RBA Inflation Calculator.

 

Source: Home Sites Development Commission. 1968. "Land - Fairfield West: New Subdivision" (Advertisement). The Daily Telegraph, December 14: 46.

NEVER BUILT SYDNEY: Hurstville's Twin Office Tower scheme (1987)

At the former ATO Office Building site in Hurstville, two residential towers are currently under construction - one is 18 levels tall and the other 14 levels.

The ATO Office Building was seven levels tall and completed in 1994. Demolition occurred in 2017.

Below is an article as published in the January 13, 1987 edition of The St George and Sutherland Shire Leader. This involved a twin tower scheme for a 10 level tower and an 11 level tower. Like the current residential development, there were objections e.g. traffic and overshadowing.

Had this scheme go ahead, I think attracting tenants may have been a challenge. The ATO building while shorter had larger floorplates that would appeal to larger firms. As for redevelopment, the towers would have been gutted and converted into residential, though I would not be surprised if they were demolished and replaced, like what has been done in regional centres like Epping.

Property Advert of the Week: AR Homes Advertisement (1965)

Below is an advertisement for Arthur Robinson Homes dating from 1965.

Source: Arthur Robinson Pty. Ltd. 1965. "Building Your New Home" (Advertisement). The Daily Telegraph, April 10: 22.

1967: Plans for the "skyline changing" Prudential Building are released.

In 1967, plans for the Prudential Building in Martin Place were released. The 27 level building  would be completed in 1971

Source: Anon. 1967. "Skyline Changing". The Daily Telegraph, June 27: 20.

Was it skyline changing? No. Could one see the building from the suburbs? Any impact was on the streetscape was on Martin Place. It was set back slightly from the street. It never blended in with the architecture lining the street. 

In 2018, demolition began on the building to accommodate the new Sydney Metro Station at Martin Place. A new, taller building is proposed for the site.

Photo was taken by the Author.

Demolition of the building in December 2018. 

Property Advert of the Week: Parkes Developments advertisement for Moorebank (1971)

Below is a 1971 advertisement from Parkes Developments advertising blocks of land at Moorebank.

Source: Parkes (Sales) Pty. Ltd. 1971. "Moorebank" (advertisement). The Daily Telegraph, March 20: 53. 

Remember This? A strange year of weather (1988)

The weather does like to play games with us. This summer has been a fairly stormy one even though Sydney is in drought and also our weather is under the control of El Nino.

1988 was regarded by some as the year that bought the weirdest weather to Sydney. The Daily Telegraph presented a feature report on December 13, 1988.

So why was the weather "weird"?

• The sixth wettest year on record - 1807mm had fallen up to December 12, 1988. According to the Weather Bureau, 1862mm would fall by December 31.
• 506.6mm fell in April, the highest since 1861.
• Warmest Winter on Record - Each day recorded an average temperature of 18.8 degrees, two degrees above average.
• Hottest October on Record - Average daily temperature of 26 degrees.
• Earliest recorded "Century Day" (when the temperature exceeds 38 degrees or 100 degrees on the Fahrenheit Scale) - 39.2 degrees on November 2. This record has been smashed with a 38-degree day on October 13, 2004.
• Coldest November day on Record - 12.6 degrees on November 16.

Remember This? - Luna Park $6.50 Unlimited Rides pass (1986)

In May 1986, Luna Park offered a special $6.50 day pass for everyone to enjoy unlimited rides. It cost the equivalent of $17 in today's money.

According to the Luna Park Website, day passes in 2019 start from $23 if purchased online and is based on your height. Many children would be charged the full price of $51 (online) or $55 (purchased at the gate).

Source: John Singleton Advertising. 1986. "Luna Park Kids Prices for All: Only $6.50 each" (Advertisement). The Daily Telegraph, May 10: 6. 

Remember This? - Waltons Town Hall Closing Down Sale (1987)

Recently, I did a series on the evolution of the 2 Park Street site (Citigroup Centre). In 1987, Waltons closed their Town Hall store ahead of the redevelopment of the site.

The date of closure was February 9, 1987. Below are several advertisements that were published in The Sunday Telegraph (February 1 and 8, 1987) and The Daily Mirror (February 6, 1987).

Below are the links to entries relating to the evolution of the site as we see it today.

• Original 1982 Scheme
• Park Tower (1986)
• Skytower (1987)
• Park Plaza (1988)
• Park Plaza IV (1988)
• Park Tower (1990)
• Park Tower II (1994)
• Citigroup Centre (2000)
• Citigroup Tower & Galeries Victoria in 2018
• "What if" (What might have eventuated had any of the unbuilt schemes had proceeded.)

Remember This? - Opening advertisement for Jordans Seafood Restaurant (1988)

After spending the past fortnight focusing on our annual Christmas and New Year snapshots from 25 years ago, We shall return to our Remember This? Series.

This will continue throughout January.

Today, I share an advertisement to promote the opening of Jordans Seafood Restaurant at Darling Harbour as published in The Daily Telegraph on July 25, 1988 . Last year, it celebrated 30 years of trading.

ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE EDITOR: Photo hosting issues now fixed

I am pleased to announce that I have managed to go through each posting and have rehosted photos that were affected by the closing of my Flickr Account. You should not find any images missing.

I also did some "fine-tuning" of postings as well doing a spelling and grammar check to ensure that they were correct.